B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Grows Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 12.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 419,711 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 46,078 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $41,739,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Norges Bank bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,479,799,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 24,213,537 shares of the company's stock worth $2,408,763,000 after buying an additional 5,550,824 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 80,742,030 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,032,217,000 after buying an additional 4,932,647 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 748.0% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,149,841 shares of the company's stock worth $313,346,000 after acquiring an additional 2,778,388 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 157.9% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 4,264,100 shares of the company's stock worth $484,231,000 after acquiring an additional 2,610,800 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $2.69 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $87.08. The stock had a trading volume of 13,919,428 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,104,738. The firm has a market cap of $219.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $81.04 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The business's 50-day moving average is $91.75 and its 200 day moving average is $99.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The company had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.72%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial reissued a "hold" rating and set a $110.00 target price (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $117.12.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.